Saranac Pumpkin Ale

Presentation: It was poured from a brown 12oz. bottle into a pint glass. Appearance: It has a deep amber color with very good clarity. Its head is thin, white in color and fades quickly leaving a few bubbles on top and no lacing. Smell: A strong spicy aroma hits you in the nose. Cinnamon and clove are the stand out spices. Taste/Mouth feel: Wow this starts off with a big spicy kick in the mouth. Allspice, bitter cinnamon and clove overpower the malt that has some toasted and caramel notes. The pumpkin flavor is really hidden deep under the spicy character of this beer. A more apt name for this beer would be Saranac Spice Ale. The spicy character fades off a touch and hop bitterness picks up before slowly fading off into the finish. Its palate is smooth and slick with mild carbonation inside its medium body. Notes: Overall it’s a little bit too unbalanced on the spicy side.

This pours a ruby or amber color with a very small head. It smells like powdered cinnamon. It tastes of vanilla and spice and cinnamon. It is OK but not good. As it warms it does start to get a bit better but then again I think most beers do.

12 oz. bottle from Whole Foods Charlottesville, Reddish amber pour with a medium head. Low retention. The spices come through strongly in the aroma, but not much else. Taste is the spices, vanilla. Terrible balance and very watery.

Bottle. Aroma of standard pumpkin spices. Flavor still just bare spices in watery malt. Didn’t hate it.

Bottle. Pours a dark orange with a small white head. Aroma is pleasantly inviting- nice pumpkin spices (cinnamon, nutmeg). Flavor is of a watery pale ale with faint spices. Weak-bodied and very disappointing. I’m glad this was a free sample...